US immigration agents used pepper spray against protesters in Minneapolis on Tuesday as residents blocked the officers’ vehicles and forced them to leave the area.
Minnesota’s state capital Minneapolis is home to the nation’s largest Somali community and is the latest city targeted by the Trump administration for mass deportation.
Federal agents launched an enforcement operation last week focused on Somali immigrants living unlawfully in the US. But fewer than half of those who have been detained are Somali.
In a recent tirade against Somali immigrants, President Trump called them “garbage” and said they “contribute nothing” to the country.
His comments have been met with shock and condemnation in the US and Somalia.
Trump’s attack was triggered by reports of fraud in social security programmes in Minnesota.
State officials have denounced Trump’s rhetoric and pledged to protect the Somali community. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said city police would not participate in federal immigration enforcement.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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